Amazon, Babies R Us recall Nap Nanny recliners after baby deaths

Four retailers, including Amazon.com have agreed to recall the Nap Nanny infant products after reports of near-falls and fatalities.

Four retailers, including Amazon.com have agreed to recall the Nap Nanny infant products after reports of near-falls and fatalities. (CPSC)

Tiffany Hsu

Four major national retailers – including Amazon.com, Toys R Us/Babies R Us, Buy Buy Baby and Diapers.com – are voluntarily recalling more than 150,000 Nap Nanny baby recliners after reports of at least five infant deaths.

At the request of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, a government agency, the companies said they are calling back Nap Nanny Generations One and Two as well as the Chill model of the recliner.

The products, according to the agency, “contain defects in the design, warnings and instructions, which pose a substantial risk of injury and death to infants.”

Aside from the fatalities, the agency said it received nearly 100 of reports of children hanging out or nearly falling over the sides of the seats, despite usually being placed in a harness. The portable recliners feature a foam base shaped like a bucket seat and a fitted fabric cover.

The recall affects the 55,000 now-discontinued Generation One and Generation Two models sold between 2009 and 2012 as well as the 100,000 Chill models sold in 2011 and after. The products were all priced around $130.

The four retailers are participating in the recall “because the manufacturer is unavailable or unwilling to participate,” according to CPSC.

Leslie Gudel, owner of Nap Nanny maker Baby Matters, wrote in a recent note on the company’s website that “the ongoing battle with the CPSC cost us so much money that it forced us out of business.”

“The loss of an infant is an unthinkable tragedy, and I am truly heartbroken for the families who have lost a child,” Gudel wrote. “But the fact that infants have died “while using” the Nap Nanny improperly, such as when used in a crib where the child could suffocate on a crib bumper or a blanket, does not mean our product caused the child’s death or is hazardous.”

The first-generation Nap Nanny product was initially recalled in July 2010 after the CPSC learned of one death and 22 reports of near-falls. The agency paired with Baby Matters to offer an $80 discount coupon for owners to buy a newer model with updated instructions and warnings.

Since then, according to the CPSC, 70 more reports of close calls have emerged, along with reports of other deaths.